GardenBanter.co.uk - View Single Post

kddaniel · 25-06-2010, 07:31 PM posted to triangle.gardens

On Thu, 24 Jun 2010 16:16:46 -0400 in wrote:

I plant carrots and onions in mortar tubs. Last year I planted the
seeds in rows and found it a pain in the ass to thin them so this year
I scattered the seeds across the tub. I must've sowed more seeds than
I realized, because the tubs are wall to wall seedlings and thinning
is even worse than last year.

You could try thinning with scissors.

Onion sets simply died, no reason. Likewise Swiss chard. I don't use
insecticides and I fertilize with Miracle-Gro every two weeks. No idea
why things died. I'm beginning to suspect the city water.

I suspect you're over fertilizing.
Every inexpensive moisture control potting mix I've found has a fair amount
of slow release fertilizer mixed in.
The other problem might be pH. The really cheap stuff from walmart looked
to be mostly the dregs from production of pine bark mulch, which would
make the mix a tad too sour for chard or onion.

Tried some Bak Choi and found out the cabbage bugs love that too, so
that went on the compost pile.

Territorial Seed and Johnny's Selected Seed are pretty good about
providing genus and species information on the vegetables.
The cabbage loopers will like any Brassica other than the black mustard
that's trying to invade my lawn.

I'm doing cucumbers in whiskey barrels. So far, so good. Saw my first
cucumber today.

Ugggh, I've been picking about 10lbs of cucumbers every other day
for the past month. Remind me in the spring and I'll give you
a couple Diamante seedlings. They are a pickling cucumber that
have produced very early, been very tasty, and remain tasty when
they get way too big.

Once again, I planted lettuce too late and it went to seed when the
heat hit it. Gotta get it in earlier next year.

Plant in August or September for a fall crop.
(But soil temperature needs to be under 70F for it to germinate).
Remind me and I can provide seed for 3 romaine varieties.
They looked really promising until a cloven hooved rat ate them.

Anyhoo for my garden this year.

I finally planted green beans the first weekend of June.
This has led to an immediate battle of wits with the local woodchuck.
A bag of hair from the barbershop appears to have discouraged a return
for now.

I was going to plant sweet corn, but have decided that it isn't worth
dealing with a wife, inlaws, and co-workers that will just throw out
an ear with any earworm damage.

I overplanted on peppers. I have 24 pepper plants consuming about
40 row feet of space. The first picking from them was today.

Tomatoes, I planted 4 brandywines and 4 mortgage lifters. One of the
mortgage lifters looks like it's going to croak, but the rest
seem to be doing pretty well. Fruit has set, but has not ripened
yet.

I have a 25' row of okra that I started picking yesterday.
I have a 25' row of zucchini which actually isn't very productive
right now, but seems to be perking up after I sprayed with bifenthrin
to kill the squash bugs. The Zuchs are 3 different varieties,
Raven, Cavilli, and Parthenon. The Cavilli is almost a white
zuch, but has proven to attract squash bugs like crazy and go
into decline very quickly once the squash bugs set in.
Raven has been insanely productive when the bees can get out.
The Parthenon has been consistently productive when it's raining
too much for the bees (Parthenon and Cavilli are parthenocarpic
varieties).

I have about 30 row feet of cucumbers. I have 4 vines of slicing
cucumbers which are pretty prolific right now, but the flavor has
been underwhelming. I have about 12 plants of a parthenocarpic
variety called 'Rocky'. They are cute little cucumbers and prolific,
but a tad bitter. I have about 12 plants of a parthenocarpic variety
called 'Diamante'. They are very prolific, very tasty, and the
most painful to pick cucumbers I've ever had.

And I have a 25' row of Naples Long squash and Rumbo Squash,
along with a couple volunteer Rumbo squash where the pumpking patch
was last year. The volunteer Rumbos are doing well. The ones with
seed purchased this year aren't doing so well. The Naples Long are
being insanely prolific and I have a bad feeling that I'm going to
have a LOT of 40lb "long pumpkins" this fall.

Other things of interest...
3 varieties of greenbeans and one variety of wax bean. Of note, woodchucks do
not seem to like the plants of Festina bush green beans.
For giggles I planted chickpeas and lentils on two beds that needed a legume.
And I have a bed of melons.